Chapter 86 – Thank You, Uncle Sam
There is something called a vestigial organ.
It refers to the reduction of unnecessary body organs in the process of evolution, leaving only traces.
It costs money to completely remove it, and it may be needed in the future, so it is more efficient to leave it in.
There is a similar concept in shelters, places called ‘containment zones’.
The containment area I am currently in is a large circular space.
Giiiiing-.
The floor slowly rises upward with a heavy driving sound.
This is a freight elevator installed to receive materials from outside during construction or to smoothly carry out ceiling construction.
It was closed upon completion of construction, but is opening for the first time today.
The reason is simple.
We plan to use this place as a helipad in the future.
Upon reaching the top, the tightly closed ceiling slowly opens. Immediately nature came into the gap.
The smell of the sea.
The faint sound of waves.
The sound of birds chirping.
The sound of leaves shaking in the wind.
It was just a matter of time, but for a moment, the world returned to a time when everything was normal.
When I went outside, the sky was full of hazy clouds, but it felt cozy to me.
Perhaps it is because of his instincts as a soldier who practiced in the field for many years.
For the same reason, I don’t like moonlit nights either. The black night sky without a single point of light is comfortable. It will hide me moving secretly underneath.
Of course, this is an absolute secret from Artemis.
Rustling.
Every time I walked, I stepped on dry tree branches and rotting leaves, making a pleasant noise.
Although this is a place exposed to the outside, there are no security issues.
Because it exists at the top of a steep cliff, it is impossible for infectious agents to crawl up to this place.
Buung-.
Even then, scout drones are monitoring the surroundings.
This new drone has three cameras, each with a different view.
The moment anything suspicious, whether heat, movement, pheromones, or anything else catches your senses, it will fire a 5.56 mm bullet.
Since ultrasonic detection is used, no one can hide their presence.
Even if you fight and destroy it, you will encounter reinforcements who have shared the situation through the network.
Even if it is destroyed in one blow without anyone noticing, the signal loss itself will immediately bring in reinforcements.
Looking at this breathtakingly perfect robot sentry makes me feel pathetic about the primitive sentry work I did with soldiers during my active duty days.
While I was lost in those thoughts, a drone approached me.
It hovers 3 meters in front of me and shakes slightly from side to side.
[Hello, technician.]
It’s Artemis.
Between my identity as a soldier and my identity as an engineer, she prefers the latter.
In fact, the conclusion was reached when fetishism was revealed in a researcher’s gown rather than a military uniform.
The drone slowly floated to the left and looked at me again.
Twist the rotor diagonally slightly and return it to its original position. Like a human’s shoulder gesture telling you to follow.
[This way.]
Following her lead, we climbed over a few small rocks and trees, and a much better view appeared.
The sea and fields are visible at a glance.
At the place I reached, there were plenty of rocks suitable for sitting.
Seeing that there are several trees in front of only their stumps remaining, it appears to have been recently trimmed.
In the distance, unharvested rice plants can be seen turning brown and swaying in the wind.
Grains that fall to the ground are picked up and eaten by rats, those rats are eaten by infected rats, and predators targeting the infected rats fly in the sky. Next to those predators, there are also drones.
Birds have recently let down their guard against their plastic neighbors.
Even if a drone passes nearby, it just stays out of the way and focuses on feeding.
There is even an entity that follows the drone’s tail.
Ta-ta-tang!
In the distance, a drone fired shots through the reed forest and then went on its way.
Then a bird descended to that location and disappeared.
[It’s a bird spell.]
Artemis told us the name of the species.
After a while, a bird charmer flies up from between the reeds, clutching something.
It was an infected rat. The lower body bursts and intestines spill out.
“The scenery is nice. “I should have come here a long time ago.”
Dalkak.
The drone landed on a small, flat rock next to me.
If you look closely, you can see that the stone was artificially carved and polished. It is also engraved with ‘A’. Have you created your own reserved seat?
[I wanted to guide you through it sooner, but I had to go through various tasks before that. Cut down trees that block the view, and cover routes where snakes or infectious agents might crawl, with cement. Put spikes there too.]
It was somehow neater than I remembered, it was her work.
There are definitely openings no matter where you look, so it doesn’t look like there’s anything lurking and trying to surprise you.
“Spikes?”
I was curious about the intrusion prevention measures, whether my occupational disease as a former soldier had kicked in.
It will be a different form from the barbed wire fences that were installed or torn down while I was in the military.
I got up from my seat and headed towards the cliff to a dangerous position.
Boom-!
Immediately nearby drones flew in and blocked my path.
“Calm down. “I just wanted to take a quick look down there.”
[If you stumble just a little bit from that location, it’s still a nether road, right?]
Boom-!
Buuung-!
Drones approach menacingly, as if telling you to step back.
“It’s okay, I won’t die.”
[Did you know that line is the number one last word of advice for men? Should I kick his ass? Go back to your seat quickly!]
I wondered how on earth she was going to kick my ass, so I thought about resisting more, but I calmly followed her instructions.
It feels good to have someone, especially an attractive woman, taking care of your well-being. Rather than taking it as a joke, we should accept it with gratitude.
“I was just curious about the possibility of intrusion through this route. “Increasing the number of exits to the outside means security becomes more vulnerable.”
[You don’t have to worry. Even if Deung Ae comes back alive, we will build it so that she will give up. Bulkheads for passageways will also be prepared in several stages.]
Well, she’s probably much more thorough than me on this part. I guess I can leave it to you.
[Rather than that, look at this.]
She sent her video to my PDA. This is a 3D diagram of the Black Hawk captured this time.
[Isn’t it really beautiful? Look at the details of this bulky rotor, the body like a hammer, and the cute wheels for that theme.]
There’s something wrong with the woman saying it’s a beefy rotor.
“It’s not a luxury product for nothing. I thought I would never ride again after I was discharged. “I don’t know what the real world is like.”
[When it’s completed, I’ll take you for a drive around here. You can look forward to it. We have planned a course with a good view.]
She looked cheerful.
I remember once taking a lift down from the rooftop of the central control room building.
Looking back, I think Artemis enjoys taking me for drives, whether it’s lifts, streetcars or cars.
Normally, it would be a man driving the steering wheel and escorting a woman, but something turned out to be the opposite between her and me.
Even when spending quality time with Chrollo or Rose, our AI girls seem to be the type that prefers to lead rather than receive.
It goes without saying that Artemis’ driving skills are great, and her personality is also a good match for a female protagonist.
After she came down and had some more time with her, she moved to the weapons manufacturing facility.
“Welcome, Manager!”
Chrollo came out to meet us.
The reverse engineering of the weapons captured from Terracorp Labs has already been completed.
We are currently preparing a production line under the control of Chrollo, a material management AI.
“Wait a minute.”
Chrollo is holding earplugs in his hand.
Stand on tiptoe in front of me and lower your slightly opened earplugs from above. The moment I covered my ears, the factory machine noises disappeared.
Our eyes met naturally.
In that position, Chrollo wrapped her arms around my neck, and I wrapped my arms around her waist.
Side.
A Platonic kiss follows, with lips touching.
Side. Side.
Chrollo’s body shakes rhythmically with the kiss.
Even though her legs and waist only moved slightly, her busty buttocks made a big trajectory.
Side.
She stroked her butt as she seemed to want to be touched. That touch. That softness.
Chrollo grabs the back of her hand. She presses down as if asking for a stronger touch.
The exquisite softness of her palm and the obedient touch on the back of her hand excited me.
Side.
However, as if that was all, Chrollo stepped behind her.
The reason I came here was to check her weapons, and she knows how to distinguish between construction and construction.
Crash.
She carefully inspected the rifle in her hand.
M27 IAR A5.
The last service rifle of the U.S. Military.
In the past, public attention was drawn to the paradigm shift to 6.8 mm bullets, but in the end, it was 5.56 mm that won.
The reason is a doctrinal issue.
As the battlefield environment has become more precise and the use of drones has increased, it has become rare for infantrymen to exchange regular combat with each other.
This tendency was particularly severe in the U.S. Military, with a few elite units taking charge of direct infantry operations, while the rest focused on support tasks.
In this situation, large-sized ammunition with increased weight and reduced magazine capacity was not as effective in actual combat as expected.
In the end, it was decided to maintain the current 5.56 mm, but develop a powerful special bullet and issue it primarily to elite soldiers.
Bang! Bang!
After holding on to the target, fire is fired.
It is the perfect balance of Cheonjoguk’s last service rifle and the last designated marksman rifle.
Ta-ta-ta-ta-tang!
There is no difficulty in controlling it even if you shoot it in rapid succession.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Some distance away, a security robot is shooting with a large prototype firearm. Every time a shot was fired, a loud noise rang out.
The Black Hawk discovered at the Terracorp factory was equipped with two weapons.
One is a 30 mm chain gun, and the other is a 12.7 mm machine gun that was dismantled and lying on the ground.
Here, work is in progress to modify 12.7 mm into the security robot’s personal weapons specifications.
In our future journey, we cannot trust only 5.56 mm and enter a facility where we may not know what is lurking around.
At 12.7 mm, even if a large variant like Juggernaut attacks, it can be torn apart with a single salvo.
Since the original is a heavy machine gun weighing over 70 kg, even if it is modified, a human cannot lift it, but who cares?
The thing running around holding it would not be a weak organic tissue, but a steel skeleton and hydraulics.
Bang! Bang!
Since there were many different types of prototypes, gunshots like small cannons rang out from all directions.
There is a bolt-action rifle model, and there is also a submachine gun model that appears in a certain classic game.
[Administrator.]
Kids contacted me through the earphones installed inside the earplugs.
When I stopped shooting and received it, a hologram of Kiz’s three-headed body appeared.
This is a typical chef outfit. You can roughly see what purpose they came here for.
Whenever this guy has special business, he comes dressed in the appropriate costume.
[Let’s provide a special meal!]
“Special food?”
[Yes!]
Kids saluted. With a ladle, not with your hands.
The manner in which he reported to the commander was completely lacking in military discipline, but I overlooked it because he was cute.
[Wasn’t there a special day recently? The manager successfully completed an external expedition and brought back valuable loot. This should be commemorated.]
Kids sent a video via PDA, and it was an edited video about this Terracorp expedition.
Records management and promotion are the tasks of Kids, a life management AI.
[I think everyone would like it if we offered a special meal to celebrate the success of the operation. The sense of belonging to our city will also be strengthened. It can’t be too late for something like this. You have to do it right away to survive.]
“Hmm.”
It seems like a pretty good idea.
“What should the menu be like? Do you have any requests?”
[Pasta, of course! Have you ever met a woman who doesn’t like pasta?]
He responded as if he had been waiting for my words.
Various types of pasta dishes appeared and revolved around the 3-head hologram of Kids.
“If you’re going to make something, you have to make it right? Don’t serve things like bibim noodles stir-fried in ketchup.”
It reminded me of the nightmarish pasta that was served as a special meal on the day I was training as a second lieutenant.
If even privates had leftovers, they would have guessed what it tasted like.
[Sure. It’s a special meal to commemorate the manager’s victory, so it should be served with care.]
Kids, who answered with a serious expression unlike usual, said he had to prepare food and disappeared.
* * *
That evening when permission for Jinsu’s special meal was granted.
“Aaaaak!”
“Yay!”
In the evening, residents were cheering in front of the pasta buffet.
Lunch is voluntary.
Just stand in line and take as much of the type you want as you want.
Saying this may make you think it’s like cheap military-style pasta, but it’s not.
There were a total of 4 types, and they were all better quality than expected.
The first is the traditional Pomodore pasta with tomatoes as the main ingredient.
It was a basic dish consisting of onions, vegetables, and minced meat stir-fried in olive oil, but unfortunately it was not popular.
This is because residents who had been eating healthy food wanted a spicy taste.
However, a few Italian women put it in their mouths with red eyes.
I don’t know if it was because it suited my taste well, or if I got emotional because of longing for the food from my hometown.
The second is carbonara coated with egg yolk and aged cheese. Pieces of pickled pork are sprinkled generously.
Thanks to cultured meat technology, we were able to secure a large amount of pork cheek meat, so we were able to maintain the traditional taste without compromising with things like bacon.
The third is sweet and spicy tteokbokki pasta mixed with tteokbokki and fish cake. This was the most popular, so the barrel had to be changed frequently.
The fourth is seafood pasta with plenty of high-quality seafood and large crustaceans.
At most regular pasta shops, due to the cost of ingredients, only small shrimp, clams, and mussels are available.
However, in shelters that rely on cultured meat technology, the dishes were prepared in an absurd way.
It would be impossible for a shelter to treat something like this every day, but it is a special day.
“How many plates are there?”
“Two plates. “I’m going to eat and go again.”
“And then you gain weight?”
“It’s dirty. “I don’t have a man anyway.”
“It’s delicious.”
Nina brought pasta on two plates because she didn’t feel like going back and forth multiple times.
Her robot, which was standing under her control, looked at her for a moment but did not sanction her.
Even while eating with her group of followers, Seyoung was lost in her thoughts about work.
She decided to propose a plan to designate memorial days for days such as the day of shelter restoration, the day of successful rescue operations, and the day of capturing special technology.
Above all else, giving residents a sense of belonging to the city…
“Sister, ah~!”
Her thoughts were interrupted by her junior holding out rolled pasta in front of her.
“Thank you.”
Seyoung opened her mouth with an awkward expression, but her face soon turned into a happy one.
A much noisier evening than usual. There is no shortage of happy smiles and exclamations everywhere.
[If not now, when would you eat like this again? Everyone, eat a lot! There are a lot!]
A hologram flying through the restaurant.
Kids smiled with satisfaction at the successful company dinner.
The manager praised it and said it was a good idea. Unfortunately, you didn’t stroke his head.
Artemis was perplexed. The goddess does not pay much attention to the lives of slaves.
Kids themselves were pretty good. Because to her the smiles and frowns of her inhabitants meant nothing.
It’s just a matter of whether you put food on a white plate or a blue plate.
The only important thing is the feeling of the owner who will enjoy the food on his plate.
Her sweet Chrollo was as happy as a mother feeding her child. She was so infatuated that within a month of her 3rd generation body, she came running to cyberspace and hugged her tightly.
And Rose.
She was excited.
Women’s lips constantly being touched by forks and noodles.
Lips that are shiny with red, orange, white, and yellow sauces.
A tongue that constantly crinkles and has broken pieces of cotton floating around.
Rose is observing those screens with interest.
The more satisfying food is, the more sophisticated human eating activities become.
There is still time until the dinner party ends.
Kids thoroughly adjusted the pasta so that it wasn’t lacking, but it wasn’t made too early, so it didn’t swell.
To report success to the manager.
And, for my beloved sisters.
